I Like My Women British
by SolaceActor
Summary: A woman is being chased from Soledad. She begins work at a ranch and becomes closer to a certain jerkline skinner. Slim likes his women British... Chapter story. Please read note at end. Rated T for later content and language. Slim/OC


Slim/OC

I breathed heavily as I sprinted through the dark, overgrown shrubbery. Diving over some brush, I stumbled and fell. It's difficult to run in the dark, that's for sure. I spat some dirt out of my mouth and scrambled to my feet again. If they found me… I would be done for. "Come on, there has to be some kind of ranch around here!" I mumbled into the still air. Animals and plants seem to leap out of the way as I swept my way past trees, the Salinas River and a stagnant pool. I didn't give it a second glance as I ran past. I stopped abruptly and hid behind a tree, catching my breath. "She ain't here…" A voice not too far away said. I froze and began to pray like crazy. "Tomorra then?" Another said. My heart began to beat really loudly, like a hammer against cloth. "Yeah, she can't get too far away." The first one said and the voices began to get further away. I could have screamed with relief but I held it in. I began running once I knew the coast was clear. I followed the Salinas River and continued until, finally, a gate came into sight. I accelerated towards it and laughed quietly when I saw that it was a ranch. Every ranch was looking for work nowadays and it would be great if I could stay there for a while, earn my keep and get the hell outta there. A figure began to approach in the darkness and all that heavy breathing began to get the best of me. I collapsed and before I lost consciousness, I heard raised voices.

My eyes fluttered open slowly and I groaned at the brightness. As my vision came into focus, I noticed where I was; I was in some sort of bunkhouse. Surrounding me were a few other beds, a large wooden table and a few stools. A small fireplace was in the corner and it was then that I realized I must have passed out. I did a double take when I saw the daylight pouring in from the rectangular doorway. I must have been out for at least five hours then. Panic settled in and I thrashed around, trying to get out of the thin, moth-bitten blanket. I fell off the bed and groaned with pain. The top of my thigh hurt a lot. Flexing it around on the dirty floor, I came to the conclusion that I had only pulled a muscle. Grumbling as I stood up and walked to the doorway, I began to ponder on what happened last night. I had been running away from… that gang… and eventually turned up at a ranch not too far from the Salinas River. I had arrived at the gate and someone had been approaching me from within the ranch. Then… it went black… No, there were raised voices and that was it. I bit my lip as my eyes focussed on the outside. It was sweltering hot and the dust in the air made my eyes water a little. There weren't very many buildings but there were definitely lots of crops that needed watering and plenty of mules that needed driving. "Mornin' Sleepin' Beauty." A voice to my left said. I jumped a little and my eyes fell on a rather short man with very curly hair. He had a slightly smug smirk going on and he seemed like a ladies man, however, his wedding ring did not go unnoticed. I gave a polite and slightly forced smile. "Um, good morning." The curly man's eyebrows rose. "You English?" He asked a little rudely. I nodded slowly. I guess my accent was a little prominent. "Ah, you'll get on well with some of the folk around here. They like new people, with new stuff." He didn't seem like one with a large vocabulary. I smiled and looked around again, praying that _someone_ would turn up. "That's good to know." I said distractedly, "I was actually hoping for a job here." Curly man frowned and cleared his throat.  
>"Well, before ya do, you'll need to be checked by Slim. You got some nasty cuts and bruises there that need lookin' at." He explained. I sighed. Getting a job would have to wait.<br>"Here, pup… C'mere pup…" I heard a few feet away. A man turned the corner and Jesus Christ, what a man he was! He was huge, like a large bear, his hair was cropped close to his skull. His clothes were a little tattered and worn, like that of a proper working man. He looked like he'd be stronger than five bulls. What struck me as odd though is the fact that he was calling for a pup. A large man like him wouldn't usually be into animals. "Hello!" I called. He looked up and he grinned goofily.  
>"Hello!" He replied happily. He seemed very happy. I smiled at him.<br>"Excuse me, what is your name and where can I find Slim?" I asked politely. His face suddenly grew tight with concentration. "I'm Lennie Small… and you can fin' Slim at… at… the mules…" He said slowly. I smiled at him gratefully. "Thank you Lennie and I hope you find your pup." He giggled and smiled again. "He's a brown and white one!" He exclaimed excitedly and walked off, searching for the pup once more. "Ugh, I hate 'im." I hear behind me. Curly man was still there.  
>"Umm… why is that?" I asked as politely as I could. Curly man snorted.<br>"I hate big guys; they think they're so smart cos they got big arms. Typical." He retorted with distaste. I narrowed my eyes. Lennie didn't seem like a guy like that. He looked much too innocent. "Um, yes, well, can you direct me to Slim please? If I can't get a job until I've been checked over, I'll need to find him quickly." I explained quickly. Curly man nodded, having vented out his anger a little, and pointed to a shed a few metres down. "He's usually in there. Probably puttin' some tar on a split hoof. Oh, and I'm Curley. Nice ta meet ya." He said happily. _How fitting_, I thought.  
>"It's nice to meet you too. My name is Lisa."<p>

"Um, Slim? Is there a Slim in here?" I asked timidly. A few bangs came from inside the hut. Out staggered a coloured man with a back that looked to be in immense pain. "Nope, jus' me." He said wearily and looked up at me. He stopped short and quickly whipped his small bowler hat off. "Sorry ma'am, din't mean to startle ya in any way or scare ya." He apologised quickly. I waved it off rapidly.  
>"No, no, it's okay. I wasn't startled anyway." I said with a small smile. He gazed up at me with wonder and frowned. "Say, how come you ain't threatenin' me and not speakin' ta me much?" He asked, almost indignantly. I tilted my head a little. "Where I come from, some coloured people are accepted. Not everyone likes it but I'm all for integration." I said with a large smile. He smiled back at me, clearing his throat. "I'm Crooks, ma'am." He looked like he wanted to thrust out his hand for me to shake but he decided against it. I put mine out anyway. "It's wonderful to meet you, Crooks. My name is Lisa."<p>

"Jesus Christ, where the hell is Slim?" I shouted in my head. He definitely knew how to keep out of the way. I stepped into another bunkhouse and found two men playing cards and Lennie sitting on the bed, watching them in awe. "Uhh… Are any of you Slim?" I asked hopefully. They shook their heads. The smaller of the two playing cards stood up and approached me. He had sharp features and seemed physically fit. "Name's George. Yours?" He asked bluntly.  
>"I am called Lisa. It's nice to meet you." I spoke with my head held high. He looked like a man who wouldn't take any shit from anyone. He nodded approvingly and returned to his seat. The other man merely turned around slightly. "I'm Carlson." Was all he said. I couldn't see much of his appearance. "Right, I've been looking for Slim for a while now. Any of you know where he is?" I asked a little impatiently. George chuckled a little but shook his head. Carlson spoke with his back to me still. "He's a jerkline skinner, damn good one at that, so he's out till late. He'll be back in about a half hour." He explained. I breathed out in realization and sighed. Thirty minutes can't be too bad. "Stable buck! Oh sta-able buck!" A nasal voice drifted into the room. I turned around slowly and saw a woman standing there. She was wearing a red cotton dress, red mules, red fingernails… Red always struck me as the colour of danger and seduction. Better watch out for this one. She leaned against the door frame, throwing her body forwards lustfully. "Alright fellas?" She asked playfully. They grunted, not looking at her. She smiled a little at me. "New girl, eh? Who's your man?" She questioned. I blinked.<br>"Oh, uh, none of them. I just came last night." I replied. Her ringlets bobbed up and down as she nodded. "Ah, I see. So, you're the girl who collapsed at the gate?" I swallowed and nodded. She began to laugh. I frowned and asked her why. "You've been all around looking for Slim, ain't ya?" I nodded in reply, wanting to know why she was laughing at me. "Well, he's been looking for you too, silly. He said you got a bit bruise on your head and a couple of scratches that need some lookin' at so he came back early to check up on ya." She explained. I sighed resignedly as I processed this information. If I had just stayed at the bunkhouse, I might have caught him earlier. "Typical…" I murmured. She grinned.  
>"So, you gonna come with me to see him or what?" She asked nicely. When I first saw her, she seemed like a little bit of a tart. I had noticed the ring on her finger as well and had come to the conclusion that she was Curley's wife. I nodded quickly and followed her out. "Uh, bye guys." I said as I left and I got a polite grunt as a farewell.<p>

"You'll like Slim, I know ya will." Curley's wife said again. I hadn't gotten her name yet and no one else actually knew it so I guessed that because she was a woman, or a 'tart', she wasn't seen as significant at all. She seemed quite nice to me to be honest. "Do… Do you mind telling me what your name is?" I asked slowly. She smiled and shook her head.  
>"Sure, I'll tell ya. It's Stacey." <strong>(A.N: Made up because Lisa and Stacey may get closer. Can't keep calling her 'Curley's wife', now can I?)<strong> I smiled. "Nice name." I complimented. She chuckled.  
>"Thanks. What's yours?"<br>"It's Lisa." She looked at me in surprise.  
>"Really?" She asked incredously. I frowned a little.<br>"What do you mean 'really'?" I repeated. It seemed like a normal name to me. Maybe it just wasn't the same because this is America, not England. "Well, I expected you to be a Sabrina or an Elizabeth, what with the accent and such." She explained. I nodded and smiled gently.  
>"Yeah, people usually think it's that." I said quietly. She stopped for a moment, as if to say something, but continued to lead the way to the bunkhouse. "Okay, here we are. Hopefully, Slim'll be in here…" She said the last part to herself, "Slim? You in here?" She said into the dark and musty room I had been resting in. "Yeah, you found her yet?" A voice called out. Stacey chuckled a little.<br>"Always putting a woman before everything else. Yeah, she's right here." She turned to me, "Come on, he won't bite or nothin'." She reassured me. I smiled a little and she gently led me into the room.  
>"Just put 'er by the table, thanks." The voice said again. Stacey did as asked and then left, giving me a goodbye before leaving. I sat on a stool, a little awkwardly to be honest, and waited. "Sorry about that; just cleanin' out from under Lennie's bed. He takes the pup under here sometimes." He explained apologetically.<br>"Oh, no, it's fine." I said quickly and looked at my hands in my lap. I heard some scuffling and looked to one of the beds. Two long legs were slowly revealing themselves and a torso appeared then a neck and then a head with a hat on it. He straightened up and I cursed the poor light inwardly. He was tall or at least seemed to be, and his voice sounded very gentle yet demanded respect in a… polite way, if that's possible. "Right, let's take a look at that head of yours." He said kindly and stepped into the light where I could see him. His face was young yet so experienced. He could have been twenty or older than forty for all I knew. He had stubble and a strong jaw, his skin very tanned from working long hours in the sun. His clothing was a shirt, slacks, brown trousers and large boots, all dirty from cleaning from under Lennie's bed and working hard with the mules. What really enchanted me though, were his eyes. They were a deep, glistening brown that seemed like they could peer into my very soul. They seemed so cold yet so warm, so intelligent and calculating. He observed every detail and remembered everything important. I couldn't help but admire his features a little. I quickly looked away and swallowed. He seemed frozen for a little while longer but then blinked and continued to walk over to me. He pulled up a stool and sat on it, picking up a flannel from inside of a bowl of water that I had failed to notice earlier. "This is gonna sting a little…" He warned me gently. I nodded and braced myself for whatever pain came next. It wasn't too bad but it still hurt like when you stubbed your toe or caught your funny bone on something sharp. I hissed every now and then and Slim would grimace when he realized it was painful. Finally, the cuts on my face were cleaned. The scrapes on my arms and legs were already treated. He wrung the flannel out with water and I raised an eyebrow at the amount of blood that leaked out as well. "Was it really that bad?" I questioned. He chuckled and nodded.  
>"Well, you should be good to go now." He said with a small smile while standing up. I returned it and rose to my feet. "I'm sticking around for a little while longer actually. Well, hopefully anyway." I added the last bit sadly. He tilted his head and crossed his arms. "You lookin' for a job?" He asked curiously. I nodded and glanced at the doorway; a shadow had appeared there. Slim looked there as well and I just heard him groan. Curley stepped into the dark room and peered at us. "You two seen my wife?" He asked rudely. I frowned and shook my head.<br>"No, I haven't seen her for about fifteen minutes now." I replied. Slim nodded in agreement. Curley sighed with annoyance.  
>"Of course, she never stays in the same damn spot for more than ten minutes…" He said angrily, "Well, you better tell me when you see her!" He left, leaving an awkward silence between Slim and I.<br>"Is he always like that?" I asked, pointing at the doorway. Slim chuckled and nodded.  
>"Depends on what you mean by 'that'." He answered simply. I gave a faint laugh at his cryptic answer. "I mean rude, loud, conceited and demanding." I replied with a joking tone. He gave a loud laugh and nodded. "Yup, that's him all over." He said, still smiling. I returned it and cleared my throat. "So, do you know where I could find the boss?" I asked, trying to break the slight awkwardness. He nodded and beckoned me to follow him. I did so and he pointed at a large hut at the top of the paved hill. "He's up in that hut. If you ain't got a work slip then I'm 'fraid that you workin' here might not happen." He said with a sad tone. I sighed and nodded. I'd have to be as persuasive as I could. "I'll see you later then… hopefully." I said with a small smile. He grinned and nodded.<br>"And I'll be here waitin'." He said kindly. I waved and began my way up to the boss's hut.

Slim watched the girl walk up to the hut and he began to wonder about her. She was a rather attractive woman but in a different way. Not in the way that a man might drool over a woman and flop over her. It was the way that the looks could brighten your day immediately or that you could amazed that the good Lord could create women. She was an example to all women. She was purty, that was for sure. Slim wandered back into the bunkhouse and sat on a stool, taking out some cards and laid out Solitaire. As he did so, he thought of the appearance of the girl. She was short but not incredibly short. She was shorter than Curley's wife but it was a comfortable size. Her clothing was a pair of shorts and a large shirt. A little abnormal but it flattered her body rather nicely. Her face was quite pale actually but not too white. Her mouth was quite small, her lips plump and when she smiled; glittering white teeth glinted at Slim. She seemed quite young but not too young; she had a few laugh lines and rather large, cute dimples. Slim nearly slapped himself for thinking of 'cute'. She looked to be about… twenty five to thirty. She'd only be a year, maybe two at best, younger than him. Her chocolate brown hair was quite long, even in the ponytail. He had taken the hairband out to inspect her head when she was still unconscious but he hadn't really been looking at her hair. He did, however, take note of how soft it was. Her eyes… They really intrigued him. They were a hazel green yet had remnants of other colours in them. Around the pupil was a ring of amber which faded to a deep brown. Small flecks of green and blue were dotted around her iris and finally, a band of forest green was at the rim of her iris. They seemed quite happy but sad at the same time. Curiosity glittered in her eyes whenever she had questioned him and she seemed very observant. He had noticed her taking note of all of his features but he had taken longer to log hers away in his own mind. Her voice and skin tone betrayed the fact that she was British but other than that, you'd think she was a natural country girl. Slim found himself hoping that she would get the job. It would be nice to have female company that wasn't begging for sex around here. It was then that Slim realized he didn't even know the young woman's name.

**Hey peeps, I know that I need to continue with this story but now that I'm reading Of Mice And Men in English, Slim seemed too good a character to miss. I won't get bored of this because when I do get bored of a story, it means that I've stopped being obsessed with the book/movie it's about. Since I'll be doing OMAM for about a year, I won't be able to stop reading it whether I like it or not. Hope you guys enjoyed. NO ONE IS PMing ME OR REVIEWING ABOUT STORIES OR ANYTHING! WHAT'S GOING ON? Guys, seriously, if I don't get feedback, I stop writing. I need reviews in order to write and keep my motivation! HEED THIS WARNING!**

**Luna**


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